CLIMBING from his hospital bed to walk his daughter down the aisle was one of the proudest moments of David Dyde’s life.

It seemed unlikely that he would make the wedding when he was rushed into A&E with severe sepsis earlier that week.

The Nuneaton grandfather spent three days fighting for his life on the critical care unit at University Hospital in Coventry.

But thanks to quick treatment, round the clock care and David’s own determination he was able to join his family to see Nicola say “I do”.

David said: “I have two sons but only one daughter, so I would have been devastated to miss my big chance to walk her down the aisle.

“I lay in bed trying to convince myself I was going to be there and willing myself to get better.

“It was such a relief when the doctors told me I could go, but we didn’t count on anything until I walked out the door.”

David was at high risk of developing sepsis after undergoing chemotherapy for acute leukaemia and later suffering bone marrow failure.

He had already spent 10 days in intensive care with sepsis in 2009.

Last year a failed bone marrow transplant meant the 55 year-old missed his granddaughter’s first Christmas.

That made the prospect of missing Nicola’s wedding even more painful.

“It has been a rough year - I have spent so much time in hospital and missed so much,” said David, who is currently on leave from Caterpillar in Leicestershire while he recovers from a second bone marrow transplant.

“When I told the doctors about the wedding they said they would try their best to get me there but they couldn’t make any promises.”

David was rushed into hospital after he began suffering a high temperature and low blood pressure at his home in May.

As he carries a card warning that he is susceptible to sepsis he was immediately taken to the resuscitation unit and given antibiotics before being moved to critical care.

Sepsis - which is caused when a blood infection causes the body to go haywire and attack itself - can often be fatal if it is not spotted fast enough.

But because in this case doctors caught it early they were able to nurse David to the point where he was well enough to leave hospital for a few hours to attend the wedding.

On the morning of the Friday ceremony David’s son brought his suit to the hospital and helped him change.

They then set off to the Heart Of England Conference Centre in Fillongley, where David walked Nicola down the aisle before posing for family photographs.

He returned to hospital two hours later for further treatment.

“I was incredibly proud to be by Nicola’s side on the most special day of her life,” said David.

“I didn’t stop for the meals because I was exhausted and I had to be careful what I ate, but now we will always have the memories and the photographs to look back on.”

Nicola, aged 32, said: “I was absolutely over the moon for my dad to be able to give me away at my wedding.

"It was such a special day and I can not thank the hospital enough for doing everything they could to make my dream come true.”